Page 98 of Everything We Found

James’s jaw flexed. “Her condition?”

“Unknown. But given the most recent photo and what they did to Phil…”

James flinched.

“That’s enough,” Marquez told Nelson. Nobody needed the image of Phil’s last moments his name alone evoked.

“Where am I during all this?”

Every head in the room turned toward Nadia.

“You’ll stay here. You’ll have access to a live satellite feed and audio,” Marquez explained when she tried to object.

“I’m coming with you.”

“Absolutely not,” Nelson said firmly. “This is a high-risk operation with multiple armed suspects.”

“I didn’t drive all this way to sit in an office and watch TV while Thomas’s life is on the line. I’m not asking to be in the middle of the exchange. But I need to be there.”

Marquez shook her head. “Ms. Jacobs, I understand your concern. But?—”

“No, you don’t,” Nadia cut in. “You don’t understand who Thomas is or what he’s doing. You’ve intentionally kept your distance from him so you don’t alert the Hidalgos, but in doing so he’s going into this alone and blind. He’s going there to die.”

“She’s right,” James said.

The agents turned to him. Nelson furrowed his brow. “Explain.”

“My brother has been sacrificing himself for others his entire life. It’s who he is. He genuinely believes his death is an acceptable price for our mother’s life. He doesn’t care if it’s futile. He intends to negotiate her life for his. That’s what he does, what he’s good at. Negotiating.”

“He believes James is far away in Hawaii. Think about what he’ll do when he realizes he’ll have to save both Claire and his brother. Any sliver of hope he has of making a deal vanishes. When you storm that airstrip, he’ll try to shield them both from the crossfire. If Ruiz at all threatens either of them, he’ll put himself in front of that madman’s gun,” Nadia explained.

“All the more reason for you to stay back,” Nelson said.

“No,” she argued. “All the more reason I need to be close. If he’s injured, he won’t fight to stay alive, not unless someone he cares about puts his interests first.”

“She’s right. It’s his pattern,” James added in a heavy voice. “He takes responsibility for everyone then punishes himself when things go wrong. Right now, you need to operate under the assumption he’s convinced his death is the only way to set things right if the exchange turns sour.”

The room fell silent for a beat.

Deputy Bailey, the quiet man in the corner with a U.S. Marshal’s badge on his belt, spoke first. “We could position her with the medical team at the observation point. Quarter mile out, good cover, clear line of sight of the exchange.”

Nadia seized on the suggestion. “Yes. I’ll stay with the medics. I won’t move unless you give the all-clear.”

“She’d be behind our tactical line,” Bailey added. “And if things go south…”

“If things go south and my brother is wounded, having her there could mean the difference between him fighting to surviveand giving up.” James looked at Nadia and her relief that he was on her side gave way to a fleeting smile of gratitude.

Nelson and Marquez exchanged looks. Then Marquez sighed. “All right. Ms. Jacobs, understand what you’re asking. This isn’t a movie. Real bullets, real danger.”

She gently touched the graze on her cheek. “I know exactly what I’m asking. I’ve already been shot at once this week. I understand the risks.”

Marquez held her stare before she nodded reluctantly. “You’ll be with the medical team at the observation point. Kevlar vest, comms at all times, and you follow every instruction without question. If you compromise this operation in any way?—”

Nadia held up both hands. “I won’t. Thank you.” She met James’s stare and they shared a grave look. They knew the stakes they were going into.

“What happens after I park?” he asked, getting back to the operation’s details.

“Exit your vehicle slowly, hands visible at all times,” Nelson explained. “If Thomas is already there, act as if you expected him. Appear resigned but cooperative.”